


The Best Nurse

by nebulaesailor



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Family, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Sick Character, Sickfic, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-02-07
Packaged: 2019-03-15 04:17:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13605360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nebulaesailor/pseuds/nebulaesailor
Summary: Xander takes care of Alexis who came down with the flu and tries his best despite being a lackluster nurse.





	The Best Nurse

**Author's Note:**

> God, I love sickfics and the lack of them in this fandom is sad. Xander is such a doting older brother (and a secret mother hen). Pft this is so fluffy that it could put me in a coma. Alexis is twelve and Xander is twenty-two.

Xander dunked the cloth in the basin of ice water and rung out the excess. Folding the cloth, he placed it on Alexis’s forehead who let out a sigh of relief. Their fever had not come down over the night and concern was starting to eat away at him. It was their own foolishness that landed her in this position. After all, they knew not to train or overexert themself in such poor weather especially when it was downpouring and their body was already so sensitive to the cold. But he couldn’t help but feel guilty, he had been pushing them to reach his standards of perfectionism and he knew they were trying so hard to impress him. Even if it meant making themself ill in the process.   
  
Alexis let out a soft whine and tried to curl in on themself, the cooling cloth slipped off their forehead which Xander moved back and ran his fingers through their hair in an attempt to comfort them. There was only so much he could do to absolve the pain they were in. Camilla was always so much better at this than he was. He wasn’t what you call the best nurse. But she was gone on a mission and he felt that as the oldest he should be the one to take care of his siblings. Also he felt like it was at least partially his fault they were so miserable.   
  
He turned his attention back to his book on diplomacy, occasionally stroking their hair and checking to see if their fever had changed. It wasn’t until they lurched up from the blankets with a sharp cry in pain that his attention was solely back on them. Their face was green and they clutched their stomach, their matted sweaty hair hanging in their face. Xander scrambled to find the bucket he had by him just in case they needed to vomit, he placed the bucket in their lap and rubbed their back as they painstakingly retched into it before resting their forehead on the edge as they let out shuddering sob.   
  
“It hurts so much.” They whimpered as Xander took the bucket off their lap and wiped their mouth with a cloth.   
  
“It’ll be over soon, Little Princet. I wish there was something I could do to make it go away but all I can do is give you the medicine the healer gave me which you already taken. Just try to lay back down and get some sleep.” He said in a way to reassure them which he knew did little to alleviate the pain they were in.   
  
He lifted a glass of water to their lips and made sure they drank most of it before letting their head fall back onto the pillows and rubbed their back until they fell back asleep. Once he knew they were completely asleep, he went into the bathroom to wash out the bucket. He knew he could've called a maid to do it but the smell was so noxious that the faster it could be cleaned the better. He washed it out in the bathtub, and went back to his seat by Alexis’s bedside. He got through a few more chapters of his book before the growl of Alexis’s stomach broke his attention. Their eyelids fluttered open and they looked at him rather helplessly.   
  
“It’s almost dinnertime, do you want to try and eat something? You haven’t eaten since this morning and didn’t manage to keep it down.” Xander asked them as he closed his book and set it under his chair, feeling their forehead to check for fever. It had gone down a little bit at least.   
  
“I guess I'll try to eat even though I still feel gross. When is Camilla coming home?” Alexis’s voice was raw and soft from their sore throat, but he could still hear what they were saying.   
  
“She’s not going to be home until tomorrow afternoon, so it'll be awhile. Is there anything you want to eat or are you not really picky?” He noticed the look of disappointment on their face when they realized Camilla wouldn't be able to take care of them.   
  
Xander didn’t know whether he was offended or not because he really was trying hard to take care of them as well as Camilla would’ve. He wasn’t as nurturing nor coddled his siblings like Camilla did which he supposed had something to do with. Camilla would cuddle and sing their younger siblings to sleep when they were ill and was attentive to their every need even if they never asked for it. He would just rub their backs and say some comforting words until they fell asleep. Perhaps, Alexis was embarrassed to have him take care of them, probably because they felt like he would look down on them and see them as a weak child. Maybe if they just verbalized this concern and stopped beating around the bush, they could address the issue head on. But Alexis being as bullheaded as they were, he would have tear it out of them and that something he really didn't want to do right now. Instead, he rang the service bell and waited for a servant to come so he could request dinner. Several minutes elapsed until Jakob, the flustered servant boy who so clearly had a crush on his sibling, came in and gave them a bow.   
  
“Good evening, Lord Xander. How is Lairde Alexis doing? Is there anything that you need?” Jakob bumbled, looking down at his shoes turning bright red, clearly intimidated by Xander.   
  
“Their fever’s gone down, though I request a healer regardless since it hasn’t gone down as much as I like. Can you please bring us dinner? I’ll have what Elise and Leo were made through Alexis should have something that’s easy on their stomach. Thank you, you are dismissed.” Xander ordered Jakob and gave him a nod of acknowledgement.   
  
“Right away, Lord Xander. I hope you feel better, My Lairde .” Jakob’s eyes drifted to Alexis who gave him a reassuring smile to let him know that they were okay, making him blush and bow before leaving out the door in a hurry.   
  
“Odd duck isn’t he.” Xander said, chuckling at the boy’s bashfulness.   
  
“He’s quite sweet once you get to know him. You just scare him that’s all. He says you’re scary with that constant frown you have on and he always thinks you’re glaring at him when he’s around me.” Alexis shifted themself so they laid higher on their pillows, a jovial look on their fever flushed face.   
  
“I’m not glaring at him. He just gets too friendly and casual around you. Also, what do you mean I’m always frowning?” Xander’s frown deepened and Alexis let out a small laugh.   
  
Soon, Jakob came in with two trays of food in his arms. He handed the tray with the plate of fresh grouse covered with a rich gravy and cranberry sauce with a side of rosemary and garlic mashed potatoes to Xander and placed the tray of chicken soup on Alexis’s lap. He quickly gave them a bow before leaving. Alexis glowered down at the bowl of bland looking soup before trying to push themself up higher the pillows which Xander got an extra pillow and put it against their back so they were in a proper sitting position.   
  
"It's so bland though. Why can't I have what your eating?" They stuck their tongue out in disgust.   
  
"You need something bland so it's easy on your stomach and you can actually keep it down. You couldn't even manage to keep porridge with a little milk in it down. I doubt something as rich as gravy will be good for you at all. Just try and eat your food."   
  
Alexis gave him a frown but regardless, attempted to dip the spoon in the bowl of soup and bring it to their lips, but their hands were too weak and dropped the spoon. Glaring at the soup bowl with a childish pout on their lips, Xander just clucked his tongue and lifted the bowl from their lap, placing his food on the bedside table. He got a spoonful of soup, blew on it, and lifted it to their lips for them to eat.   
  
“I’m not a child, you don’t have to feed me.” Alexis said, shooting glare in his direction and turning nose up at the offending spoon.   
  
“You obviously can’t feed yourself, so I’ll have to do it for you. You need to eat, so open up, Little Princet.” Xander replied, spooning the soup into Alexis’s mouth which they reluctantly opened and swallowed.   
  
He fed them spoonful after spoonful of soup until until the bowl was mostly empty and they refused to eat anymore. He started on his dinner as Alexis watched him with heavy eyes, saying nothing. When he finished, Xander rang the service bell for the servants to collect the dishes, helping Alexis lay back down and get comfortable. They looked at him rather listlessly from the pillows as he tucked them in and sat back down in his chair.   
  
“Can you read to me?” They asked him as he went to pull out the book from under his chair, Xander gave them a look before setting the book on his lap.   
  
“I’m not sure you’ll find what I’m reading interesting. It’s about foreign diplomacy which you call as “boring as tar” whenever I try to teach it to you. Also, you really need to get more sleep. Your fever isn’t going down that much and putting more stress on yourself will make it worse.” Xander said as he opened his book and tried to finish where he left off from.   
  
“But, Big Brother! Can you please read to me a book from my bookshelf? Like you use to when we were younger? I promise I’ll go to sleep if you just read me a few chapters. Please?” Alexis begged giving him those damned puppy dog eyes which he knew he had no defenses against.   
  
“Fine, but only four chapters and then you are to sleep without complaint.” Xander got up from his seat and went through her bookshelf on the other side of the room, finding a book he knew they both enjoyed and sat back down to read it.   
  
“What book is it?” They asked trying to look over at the spine.   
  
“The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.” Xander turned to the first page to read it aloud, settling into his natural narrating voice as well the different often silly voices he would often give to the characters to make the book more entertaining.   
  
Time past in a blur until he got to the eighth chapter, and realized Alexis had fallen asleep while he had been reading. He set the book back on the table, and got up from his chair and stretched out his back. It gave a satisfying crack as he rolled his shoulders, his whole body stiff from sitting and sleeping in a chair for a day in a half. He was not looking forward to sleeping another night in an uncomfortable wooden chair. Xander’s gaze went to the empty space that Alexis left on the bed as they slept on the side where his chair was. Deciding that he was going to spare his back another grueling night of chair torture, he lifted the blankets up and laid down on the bed. He blew out the candle and shut his eyes when Alexis scooted over to his side of the bed and curled up against his chest, wrapping their arms around him. Xander let out a small smile and wrapped his arms around them in return. Kissing them goodnight, he let his eyes close as their soft breathing lulled him to sleep.   
  
“Goodnight, Little Princet.”


End file.
